


You Have Witchcraft In Your Lips

by rancheel



Series: When You Depart From Me Sorrow Abides, and Happiness Takes His Leave [4]
Category: British Actor RPF, Tom Hiddleston - Fandom
Genre: Coriolanus!Tom, F/M, Fake Blood, First Kiss, References to Shakespeare, Shakespearean Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-20
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-10-25 18:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17730377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rancheel/pseuds/rancheel
Summary: Backstage during one of Tom's quickest costume and makeup changes, he decides that it's the perfect time to finally make a move on Noelle after constant flirting in the makeup chair.(Title taken from Henry V - Act 5, Scene 2)





	1. Time Is Slow For Those Who Wait

**Author's Note:**

> As a theatre kid who loves special effects makeup, I think I had too much fun figuring out how the makeup artists put all of Tom's prosthetics on. 
> 
> I also had too much fun describing them and forcing you to read through the routine I think they most likely would have done, and that's probably why this is chaptered. I have too much fun researching things and it went out of hand, but I like the flow it has. I have been working on this for literal weeks and this is practically my child at this point, and I'm not even halfway done with this whole first step in Tom and Noelle's story. Enjoy!

“So you’re just going to have to add a bit more blood here, here and... _here_ ,” Josie said as she pointed at some old sketches of Tom’s prosthetics that Noelle had _specifically_ for this reason.

Noelle was quick to place the sketches on the closest smooth surface near them and have Josie rattle off the places where more things needed applicating again once Noelle grabbed the pen that was secured in her bun. She’d only been at the Donmar for an hour, and she felt like she was slightly overstaying her welcome.

“Alright, I’ll be sure to make it extra gory for the cameras. Anything else?” Noelle questioned as she finished writing down what to add, rereading through the list before Josie shook her head.

“Nope, that should do it, thank you, Noelle!” She called over her shoulder, already getting pulled away by some of the soundboard men. Noelle let out a small sigh of relief and went to cap the pen, letting out a slight hiss as the pen’s tip connected with her skin instead of the cap, a small black ink mark left in its wake before she sucked in a harsh breath and shoved the cap onto the pen.

The Donmar Warehouse was hectic today, rightfully so. Today was the day that the National Theatre Live people were going to come in and shoot the seven thirty show of Coriolanus. Josie was being pulled in all directions by all the tech crews as the actors that arrived hours before their call time tried their best to stray away until their director called them to action.

Noelle spent a good five minutes _too_ long weaving through crews to get back to where her makeup resided so she could be sure she had everything ready for Tom when he came in for his routinely beating with multiple makeup brushes and be subjected to Noelle’s rambling and slight humming.

She tried to keep her mind off Tom. They’ve been getting a little closer and decided to flirt in the workplace. Even if Coriolanus’s run was going to end the day _before_ Valentine’s Day, it felt extremely unprofessional to flirt with her extremely... _handsome_ coworker.

Okay, maybe her mind _couldn’t_ stay off of Tom.

Eventually, Noelle happily resided in was she assumed was the _least_ chaotic room out of the entirety of the Warehouse, the small makeup room with the stupidly bright blue kiddie pool in the middle of it, multiple flicks of blood on the rim and floor of it.

Just like she left it after last nights show.

Noelle smiled to herself and carefully placed the papers with new notes scribbled haphazardly on her neatly organized counter that was lined by product labels facing forwards.

“Well, let’s see if Tom’s going to be on time today then, huh?” she questioned aloud, to no one in particular. _Maybe_ she was talking to the kiddie pool she was growing extremely fond of. She probably won’t find out until she has her third coffee for the afternoon.

Grunting as she grabbed the stool Tom usually sat on, Noelle placed it right in the middle of the kiddie pool, slightly grimacing as she realized the blood that was in the middle around the small pegs would probably dry and act like a glue.

She would have to hunt down Annette after the show so they could give it a proper wash again. Noelle shifted her weight on her arms as they stayed on the stool, making sure that it wouldn’t move much before turning back to the sketches and placing them on a small table in a neat little stack so she could reference them whenever she got to work.

Once that was done, she decided to go ahead and get everything she needed together. She grabbed the alcohol activated palette she usually used, the masking tape and little spray bottle with a capital A already set atop it for her to place next to the papers.

Noelle must have had a little extra time on her hands to be this precise on where everything was, or maybe her nerves were already kicking in just less than twenty-four hours ago and she didn’t want to mess up what she hadn’t mentally prepared for several times now.

By the time she heard a small knock on the door leading into her small quarters, all of Tom’s fleshy prosthetics, setting spray, multiple brushes, Mastix brand Spirit Gum and Spirit Gum Remover, and a few stage blood varieties had joined the alcohol palette, masking tape, and small alcohol spray bottle on the table while Noelle read her notes she was given over again on the stool in the kiddie pool, not even glancing at the clock in the room as she kept her eyes trained on the paper with her hair elastic on her wrist and her hair pushed behind her ears.

“You’re right on time, RADA.” Tom could practically hear her smile as he slid himself in, one hand holding two small looking cups of coffee.

“Nice to see you too, Noelle. Coffee?”

Noelle hummed from her spot, not shifting at all as she moved to slowly run a hand through her hair as she heard the door click shut.

“Cream, a lot of sugar?”

Tom scoffed in response as he placed both cups where a small tape rectangle was made on the counter with the vanity where the drinks usually go.

“How else do you happen to take your coffee?” Tom questioned with a hint of playful confusion. “No seriously, I’d love to know. They say I’m _fantastic_ at making a cup of coffee.”

“Who’s they?” Noelle asked, raising an eyebrow as she slowly turned on the stool and lifted her head up before taking in Tom’s outfit. A loose pair of joggers and a black, baggy tank top to match. She could make it through the rest of the day, couldn't she?

Tom laughed softly as he leaned against the counter, watching as Noelle made a careful step to avoid stage blood on the bottom of her boots as she got out of the kiddie pool.

“That’s not important, what _is_ important, however, is how the _lady_ takes her coffee,” Tom reasoned smoothly, moving a hand to lift up and gently wave around the cup that had Noelle’s name handwritten on the sleeve. Noelle rolled her eyes fondly in response as she placed her papers down to move over and grab the small cup of warmth.

“If you put salt in it again, I’ll be sure to get stage blood in places stage blood _shouldn’t_ be, Hiddleston.” Noelle’s free hand moved to swat at Tom’s well-toned bicep as she took her first sip after flicking her hair to the side with a move of her head.

Tom let out a playful hiss, pretending to block her attack as he reached over her carefully to grab his cup for one last sip. Noelle smacked her lips gently, nodding a little bit at the taste that was left in her mouth.

“Did you ask them to add some caramel?” she asked, twisting carefully to place her cup back in the confines of the masking tape rectangle, already heading over to where the makeup sat as she rolled her sweater sleeves up carefully. Tom let out a hum as he swallowed what he’d sipped, taking it as his cue to get into position.

“I did. Thought it’d give you a little boost,” Tom said thickly, quickly clearing his throat as he stepped into the clean parts of the kiddie pool to sit on the stool.

“That’s _sweet_ of you,” Noelle said with a joking tone, causing the both of them to laugh at the small pun before Noelle started to grab the prosthetic for Tom’s left arm in one hand, and the bottle of Mastix Spirit Gum Remover in the other.

“Ready to look like you just came right out of _Corioles?_ ” Noelle asked while she suddenly turned around to face Tom, trying to imitate Hadley’s accent, only to horrendously fail and move into what sounded like a _terrible_ Irish accent.

Tom tried to keep a straight face as he just nodded, forcing a smile before Noelle just completely deflated, already starting to giggle once more as Tom followed, straightening his tank top.

“Hadley would be _very amused_ at your attempt at his accent, darling,” Tom said as he came down from his giggle fit, Noelle still high on her own to _completely_ skip over the fact that he just called her darling.

“I would hope so, I try my hardest here at SFX HQ,” Noelle spoke between short breaths, finally compiling back into one piece as she started to press the prosthetic against Tom’s shoulder that was facing outward to be sure of the placing for the evening. “Could I see your hand for a moment?”

Tom was quick to hold his hand up for Noelle. She was thankful they could easily switch from joking around to being completely serious. She quickly pressed the pad of her finger gently against his skin where the prosthetic flap she’d be gluing down is going to be before quickly replacing her finger with his own.

“Keep your finger there so I can prep your skin for the Spirit Gum, please.”

Tom nodded and sat up a little straighter, noticing that Noelle was slipping into her _“Instructor Voice,”_ as he called it. She was definitely getting into her zone for applying his makeup.

“What is Spirit Gum again?” Tom could hear the small slap of the latex against the table as she started to grab a small cotton ball from the counter to clean the spot of his arm where the prosthetic was to go.

“Spirit Gum is an adhesive that people use to apply wigs and fake facial hair onto their models. The type of Spirit Gum that I’m using is called Mastix. This is the kind that I can use on latex pieces, such as your arm and shoulder pieces.”

Tom nodded slowly as he felt a cold substance on his shoulder, feeling it spread down in a upside down U shape. He felt Noelle’s hand slightly nudge his finger away for a moment to rub under it.

“This Mastix stuff can hold your prosthetics on probably forever if I apply it well enough, honestly. Could probably rip your skin off if you pulled at it though,” Noelle joked in a casual voice, causing Tom to snort just a bit before he felt another cotton ball start dabbing around where he assumed the prosthetic was going to be.

“Impressive.”

“It really is. I could go on about the other cool things about the stuff I put on you every night, but you’ve already heard it about a _million_ times at this point, so we’re gonna go and change the subject,” Noelle said quickly before he could get in another question, tossing the cotton ball she just used before grabbing the prosthetic to press the thin flaps evenly onto the thin line of the Spirit Gum she made. “How was your morning?”

Tom tried not to flex too much as he shook his head a bit. “Good, took a few calls, had breakfast at the cafe where I got the coffee. The usual _RADA_ routine,” Tom teased as Noelle snorted as she carefully placed the rest of the piece perfectly on his bicep.

“A RADA in his natural habitat?” Noelle muttered, moving away to inspect the prosthetic to be sure it blended in with Tom’s skin as she moved to quickly tie her hair back up again so it didn’t fall in her face or in any of the things she was going to be working with.

“Definitely.”

Noelle let out a hum in response as she ran her fingers over the thin latex before moving to reach for the Spirit Gum to be extra careful that the edges of the prosthetic stayed. She noticed Tom had shivered slightly when she was rubbing over his bicep.

She tried not to think about it too much as she started applying the Spirit Gum, Tom starting to eye the table with everything Noelle usually used.

“Are those drawings of my arms?” Tom questioned curiously, sitting completely still as Noelle glanced over at where his gaze was set quickly before continuing to apply more product, nodding with a small hum affirmation.

“Did you do that? The sketches, I mean.” Tom’s voice held what sounded like astonishment. Noelle capped the Spirit Gum and grabbed the remover again and a few cotton balls before she carefully stepped into the kiddie pool to get to Tom’s shoulder.

“Yeah, most of them. Some are from Josie, but most of the smudging and rough lines are from me,” Noelle reassured before she picked at Tom’s tank top. “You want to keep this on for application or take it off?”

Tom rose a brow as he turned his head to face Noelle behind him before realizing she was talking about his tank top.

Noelle was about to say something again when Tom just lifted the fabric from his right arm and carefully pulled his head through it, his whole right shoulder now exposed as both sleeves rested on his left shoulder.

“I have never seen _anyone_ do that,” Noelle said quietly, slightly impressed with the move before laughing quietly at her own reaction and shaking her head before uncapping the remover to prep Tom’s shoulder.

“Do you need the prosthetic?”

“I shouldn’t, I remember where it goes usually, thank you for asking though,” Noelle responded quietly, coating the cotton ball before carefully running it from Tom’s shoulder blade to the edge of what felt like his collar bone, tossing the cotton ball into the trash successfully as Tom shivered much more openly now.

“Is it _that_ cold?” Noelle asked as she moved out of the kiddie pool, starting to grab the actual Spirit Gum bottle and the prosthetic. Tom tried to hold back a blush as he stumbled a bit to try and form a sentence.

Noelle caught it right as she turned around, raising a brow and trying not to let her mind flatter herself with the thought that Tom would be a little disoriented because of _her_ touch. If she thought about that, who _knows_ how long this application would be.

“I’m- _uh_ , sensitive?” Tom offered with a sheepish smile, the slight pink tint on his cheeks looking extremely vibrant under the lights in the room. Noelle smiled widely and carefully moved back behind Tom in the kiddie pool to let Tom’s explanation bounce around in her head for a moment.

Maybe Noelle could let her mind flatter herself just this once.

Noelle was quick to recover from her quick reasoning with herself, feeling a bit of awkward tension between them before remembering what she had finished last night once she made it home.

“I read the recommendation you gave me, by the way,” Noelle in a lower voice than usual, trying not to spook Tom too much with a volume change so close to his ear.

Tom let out a hum and jolted anyways, Noelle’s hand landing on his upper back that was covered by the tank top.

“Easy, big boy, Henry V? I finished it _finally_ ,” Noelle reasoned, feeling Tom quickly sit back up straight so Noelle could continue applying.

“You did? How did you like it?”

“It was good, Henry’s _insanely_ ambitious. He also seemed extremely stern and kept the treasury filled, from the bits I remember in its entirety.”

Tom nodded slightly with a smile on his lips as he felt another cotton ball make contact with his skin.

“You forgot some of the major plot points, haven’t you?” Tom questioned amusingly before letting out a gasp as he felt Noelle pinch the back of Tom’s neck. He tried not to slam his head back to hide the exposed skin she’d just pinched as he grimaced, holding back a laugh.

“Does that mean I was right?”

He could practically hear Noelle smiling as she muttered back her response. “Shut up.”

Tom smiled a bit more to himself before he felt the second prosthetic pressed onto the layer of product Noelle had laid down, trying to ignore the feeling of her fingers against his skin so he didn’t embarrass himself and shudder again.

Once the prosthetic was evenly placed down, Noelle went over the edges with Spirit Gum to be sure they were blended well. Eventually she was done with the prosthetic application and quickly moved back out of the kiddie pool and was back in front Tom again, placing down the Spirit Gum container on the table with the rest of her tools.

“How do they feel?” Noelle asked as she carefully moved back over to Tom to tap around the prosthetic on his left side to see if the edges were dry. Tom moved his arms around a bit to get a feel for them attached to his skin.

“Good. Not like you stuck latex on my body,” Tom affirmed as he turned his head to look at Noelle, seeing her small smile grow slightly as she tapped along the fake gash.

“Great. Since your edges on your left prosthetic are dry, I’m going to go ahead and hit it with some color now, then once your right one dries, I’ll paint it and then we can _finally_ start doing the masking tape,” Noelle explained as she quickly spun around to start grabbing a few brushes and her alcohol palette.

Tom let out a faint groan in response before nodding, trying to ignore the urge to roll his shoulders.

“I’m assuming you have a love hate relationship with a roll of tape, Mr. Hiddleston.”

“Your assumption is extremely accurate, Miss Cooper,” Tom replied, watching as Noelle sprayed at the alcohol palette with the small bottle with the capitol A on it. Noelle let out a laugh.

“What if the masking tape has feelings? You could have just offended one of your many _adoring_ fans!” Noelle exclaimed playfully as she carefully swung back around, back at Tom’s side to paint in the prosthetic.

“Well, my apologies to the masking tape, but I don’t like the stinging pain I get after I pull it off before the show!”

Noelle just clicked her tongue as she held back a laugh, mixing her brush in one of the multiple colors in her palette before she went to rub it into the premade line in the prosthetic.

“I don’t think the tape will forgive you after such an insult.”

Tom sighed dramatically and let his head fall forwards carefully, letting out what sounded like a sigh of regret.

“Send the tape my love, I meant no offense,” Tom replied sternly, lifting his right hand up to gesture as he spoke, looking up at Noelle to see her adorable concentration face.

“Oh yeah? Tell that to the tape, she’s probablycrying _right now_  as we speak.” Noelle tried not to laugh as she spoke before a comfortable silence fell upon them. Tom tried his best to not watch Noelle as she worked, and Noelle tried not to notice the slight changes in Tom’s muscle mass for what felt like the _millionth_ time during this show’s run.

How does one _extremely attractive_ man get that much muscle from so many runs of a play? She wouldn’t know. She knew Coriolanus was physically demanding, but _Jesus,_ why did Tom actually try to get the physique of an actual Roman Soldier? She wouldn’t know.

If Tom knew what she was thinking as she did his makeup, Noelle would probably _die on the spot_ , truthfully. Sure, they’ve been flirting, but she’s never been too good in voicing her likes, regardless of the relationship with anyone. Hell, she was even terrible at _flirting,_ so why did Tom still have some interest in her? Hell, maybe he doesn't think of her like that anymore and everyone who touches his shoulder like she did makes him shiver. He hadn't flirted with her yet during their makeup session, so only time could really tell.

Noelle just started to ignore what she was thinking to quickly finish the first layer of prosthetic makeup, taking in a slow breath to try and keep her mind on track with what she was doing.

“Tom, could you tap around the edge of your other prosthetic for me, please?” Noelle asked suddenly, dusting over the edges of the gash in the prosthetic she was working on with a deep red shade.

Tom let out a hum and carefully moved his right hand to do what Noelle told him to, craning his neck a bit. Noelle stopped to be sure he was doing it right and caught a glimpse of his neck straining. _Noelle Cooper, you’re trying to work this is no time for-_

“It’s supposed to feel dry right?” Tom asked as he kept tapping around the edge with his middle and index fingers gently. Noelle cleared her throat suddenly and quickly turned her gaze to Tom’s hand, leaning forwards a bit to catch a glimpse of the edge to see if his finger catches.

“Y-Yeah, dry, not tacky in any way.”

“The front half feels fine then, do you want me to hold the palette while you check the back?” Tom offered, turning his head suddenly only to be met with Noelle’s face only a few centimeters away from his own. The both of them started to blush, Noelle letting out a gentle huff of air.

“I- uh- _nah_ , no, I got it, um.” Noelle was quick to pull her face away from Tom’s, moving to shove the handle of her brush horizontally in her mouth before she held the palette up as if it were a tray so she wouldn’t hit anything with it, moving behind Tom in the kiddie pool and quickly tapping around the edges he couldn’t reach as she felt her teeth throbbing from how hard she was biting down onto the brush handle.

She really wanted to just dive out the nearest window and call it a day at this point of the process.

Noelle let out a hum before she quickly moved out from behind him, feeling her cheek with the back of her hand to see if it really was as hot as she thought.

It definitely was.

Noelle held back her groan and pulled the brush from her mouth, only to feel the brush tap on her cheek it was closest to, a nice deep red streak most definitely left in the brush’s wake.

 _God_ , she’s going to need a lot of strength to finish this paint job this afternoon.


	2. Time Is Too Swift For Those Who Fear

It’d been a few hours since Tom and Noelle had seen each other. Noelle finished her job with flying colors and was _definitely_ still thinking about how she was _so close_ to Tom and how his neck looked when he twisted it to look at the prosthetic.

And _of course_ she was thinking about how his shirtless form was in front of her at _all times_  as she was applying the black alcohol activated paint over his strategically tape covered abdomen that she may have also gotten a _bunch_ of the said alcohol paint on her forearms when she twisted a certain way.

Her station was clean, unlike her forearms and her left cheek, and she was letting the alcohol palette dry. She kept the stage bloods out for when she had to move all the way to upstage right where eventually she’d place the kiddie pool, and couldn’t get the stupid wink Tom sent her as he exited the room with his still semi-warm coffee.

After the whole _“close for comfort”_ situation, as Noelle called it, he seemed.. _c_ _onfident._ More so than usual. Maybe Noelle was reading his body language wrong, but he seemed proud of how she was all flustered after that and he kept giving her some lingering touches and accidentally bumping into her.

“Noelle!”

Noelle jumped back from the sudden voice of Annette, grunting as she slammed her lower back into the counter behind her. “ _Hi,_ Annette.”

“What the hell were you doing? You look like you're dissociatiatin’ a little _too_ much.”

Noelle snorted as she gently pushed some loose strands of her hair back up into her bun to catch her breath, ignoring the thoughts of Tom to the best of her ability.

“I’m fine, I was just thinking. What’s going on? Time to move the kiddie pool?” Noelle asked kindly, reaching out to take a sip of her coffee that was still left over from earlier, grimacing at the cold temperature. Annette nodded and laughed at Noelle’s face before moving to lean next to her on the counter.

“Yeah, but we have a bit to catch up. How did it go?”

“How did _what_ go?”

“You know _exactly_ what I'm talking about," Annette said sternly as Noelle just gave her a confused look. She sighed before crossing her arms over her chest.

"The makeup with Tom,” Annette elaborated before nudging Noelle gently as she looked at her with a reassuring smile, “he looked _super_ happy for someone who has to get drenched in fake blood in the next hour when I passed his dressing room.”

Noelle smiled widely and gently pressed her cup to her cheek to try and cool the skin down from her blush again. Annette was quick to catch on.

“What did you two do? Did you  _finally_ kiss? Are you the new Mrs. Hiddleston?” Annette questioned quickly, causing Noelle to laugh shyly and quickly place her coffee cup in the tape rectangle.

“ _Calm yourself_ , nothing major happened. Flirting and extra touches here and there. _Nothing_ _more_. And why would we marry after the first kiss? That’s _extremely_ fast, I’ll have you know.”

Annette deflated slightly and pouted. “He looks like he’s ready to marry you, y’know?”

Noelle scoffed and shook her head slightly before pushing off the counter, moving over to where the stool was placed after she had taken out of the pool, sliding on top of it to sit.

“I doubt it.”

Annette just huffed and ran her hands through her curls.

“Y’know what? Let’s jus’ start moving’ the kiddie pool. I’ll try and convince you about Tom later,” Annette said, moving over to where the kiddie pool sat, grimacing at what looked like fresh blood.

“Did you _have_ to go all out with the blood?”

Noelle let out a small sigh and slowly moved off the stool, deciding to stand on the opposite end of the kiddie pool to help Annette.

“Yeah, Josie kinda gave me notes to add as much as possible without the blood seeping through the shirt Tom wears, I had to open a whole new jar of Thick Gel Blood,” Noelle huffed, squatting down to pick off some of the dried up stage blood that was on the rim.

“That just looks _disgustin'_ , Noelle.”

“It’s my job,” Noelle said simply, a small smile forming on her face before she moved to stand back up, “speaking of my job, how hard is it going to be getting this kiddie pool to upstage right?”

“Well, we’ll probably need to shove some people out of the way, there's some camera guys here filmin' for the livestream tonight-”

“Seriously? It’s so close to show time though,” Noelle stated, completely cutting off Annette with her face contorted into confusion before she started walking over to the door of the makeup room quickly. Annette nodded and bent down to grab the cleanest edge of the kiddie pool she could find.

“Yeah, I dunno, ain’t my job to ask _that_.”

“What even _is_ your job then?” Noelle questioned back teasingly, throwing Annette a look over her shoulder before she twisted the doorknob and take a look out to see how crowded the backstage area just so happened to be.

“Oi! Watch it, Cooper! I have a kiddie pool of fake blood, I'm not afraid to use it!” Annette fired back dramatically before Noelle opened the door as wide as possible to they could get through. She was quick to return back to the opposite end of the pool.

“Don’t ruin this sweater, Annette, or I will _ruin_ you.” Noelle grabbed the edge with a grin on her face now as she lifted up the kiddie pool, watching Annette roll her eyes before doing the same and shuffling with Noelle to the open door.

“You could _never_! You love me too much!”

Noelle let out a huff before she poked her head out of the threshold of the room once more, seeing some clear space for them both to walk out, the backstage space still looking hectic as ever.

“Alright, let’s start tilting the pool slowly, the blood shouldn’t drip too fast,” Noelle reasoned as she turned to face Annette before they both started tilting the pool to the left carefully before Noelle led Annette to shuffle out the door.

Backstage, there were a variety of crew shirts to be seen. Some from the National Theatre Live people, some from Coriolanus, and another type Noelle had no idea existed. Regardless, it was still a mess and Josie was nowhere to be seen.

That’s probably why it was so messy.

Noelle and Annette were officially out of the makeup room, still holding the kiddie pool at a 90 degree angle when Noelle let out a low groan, not wanting to be rude to her coworkers.

“I know it looks bad, but we just have to raise our voices a _small amount_ and _force_ them to move.”

“You’re just saying that to make me sound better for raising my voice at people, Annie,” Noelle said before gently tugging the pool for them both to start moving to stage right before Noelle cleared her throat as they saw a bunch of crew members in a small pod having a conversation.

“Excuse us! Kiddie pool coming through!” Noelle called out, automatically gaining the attention of some of the crew in front of her and Annette. They were quick to go against the wall they were closest to, along with dragging a few extra members out of the way.

Noelle sent the few she knew a smile in thanks before Annette spoke up once they were near where the pool was spiked to be.

“Thank you much! Appreciate it!” Annette shouted once they successfully missed the wire they usually trip over when they try to move the pool, hearing a chorus of _“you’re welcome_ _'s"_  coming from the crew members they passed.

Noelle let out a small laugh before looking down at her feet to try and find the neon green tape she’d chosen to mark where the pool should go, feeling her sleeves start to slide down her arms a bit.

“Do you see the tape, Annette?” Noelle asked suddenly, still looking around their feet. Annette sounded as if she was holding back a laugh as she started to slowly tilt the pool back to it’s bottom.

“We’re right on top of it, just let the pool down,” Annette reassured before Noelle smiled at her own stupidity before she and Annette plopped the pool down on top of the tape.

“There we go, she’s ready for the show!” Annette said proudly as if they’d both just ran a marathon before holding her hand up for a high-five. Noelle just shook her head laughing as she started to roll her sleeves up again before noticing the black alcohol paint had touched some of the knitted fabric. Her laugh then turned into a groan.

“What are you groaning for? It wasn’t _that hard_ of a job!”

“That’s not why I’m groaning, Annie!” Noelle replied quickly, letting out a small huff before gesturing to her sleeves by baring her forearms to Annette, completely ignoring her hand that was up in the air.

Annette frowned and let out a small hiss, quickly moving to take her hand out of the air and place it in her pocket.

“Shit. I'm sorry, ‘Elle.”

Noelle shrugged with a sigh as she just tried to roll her sleeves up before she just gave up, starting to take her sweater off to reveal her black shirt that was under it.

Annette gave her a weird look and rose a brow.

“If you had a shirt under your sweater the whole time, why did you keep the sweater on?” She asked, Noelle tossing the sweater over her shoulder before she waved Annette to follow her back to the makeup room.

“Because I _knew_ I was going to get cold and I didn’t wanna bother taking it off,” Noelle simply replied, Annette following her close behind as they weaved through the crews again before they were back in the makeup room to gather the bloods they were going to use.

“That makes sense. Were the blood buckets where they’re supposed to be?” Annette questioned suddenly as Noelle tossed her sweater on top of her bag that was under the small desk in the room as she made her way to look at the blood labels.

“I think so. If you want to run back and check again, be my guest.”

Annette was about to speak up as she grabbed the stool so she and Noelle could sit and wait for when the blood had to be used when the intercom crackled over the speaker to call everyone to places.

“Well, looks like we’ll have to hope they’re there.”

* * *

_“Mend and charge home, or by the fires of heaven I’ll leave the foe and make my wars on you! Look to it!”_

Noelle was quick to get up off the stool and quietly instruct Annette on what to do once Tom got back to them upstage right, seeing Aiden, another crew member that was designated to help Noelle with the quick job.

Noelle quickly grabbed the small bucket that was made for building sandcastles with, slightly grimacing at the sight of the stage blood sloshing around as she moved before placing it onto the stool, watching as Tom jogged from the lighting and fire ladder, tossing his armour swiftly into Aiden's arms before he quickly got into the pool just as Annette appeared next to Noelle so they could quickly and efficiently get Tom covered in blood.

“Cheers,” Annette said quietly before dunking her hands into the blood, moving quickly around the sides of the pool so she could get her hands on Tom’s shoulders. Noelle just held back a laugh before she dunked her hands in, starting to get her hands on Tom’s head.

She was quick to lather Tom's hair with the fake blood before she dunked her hands back in the bucket to start applying the blood on his face as fast and evenly as she could with his eyes closed. Annette started to flick some of the blood on his chest to look as if he had gotten sprayed once Noelle moved back to check the amount of blood they had left in the bucket.

Noelle waited for Annette to take the last dunk in her hands to get Tom's back right as he opened his eyes, seeming hopeful to not have any blood poured on his head like most nights, but Noelle just gave him a sympathetic smile just before he squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to contort his face in any way to avoid getting weird lines and wrinkles in the blood on his face.

The second Annette moved out of the way to stop applying her blood for a moment, Noelle went ahead and poured what was left of the blood on the top of Tom’s head, the bucket being placed back on the stool so Noelle could mess his hair up even more as the blood started to slowly drip down his face.

Annette quickly went back to work, Noelle checking her work on Tom’s front side before she caught him staring at her.

He looked completely intrigued and zoned out at the same time, his blue eyes vibrant compared to the fake dark red stage blood that was successfully over his face with no out of place marks.

Noelle rose a brow and held her hands up a bit so the blood would drip down her arms and not onto her jeans as Annette practically slid back out from behind Tom, rushing to go clean off her hands.

_“But with thy grim looks and the thunder-like percussion of thy sounds, thou madst thine enemies shake, as if the world were feverous and did tremble..”_

Noelle tried waving her hands in front of Tom’s face to get his attention and come back from wherever he was, but he wouldn’t budge. She took in a deep breath and started to whisper aggressively, hoping that his now bloody mic wouldn’t pick up what she was saying.

“Tom, you’re going to mi-”

Tom cut her off by surging forward and pressing his lips to hers.

At first, Noelle was tense, her eyes widening from the sudden action before she quickly relaxed and closed her eyes, leaning up against his slightly bloody hands that had found their way to her cheeks.

Their lips molded perfectly together as Noelle’s hands found their way to Tom’s arm guard pieces that went with his costume as Tom’s bloody nose and cheek bumped into her own as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss.

After a moment, Tom was quick to pull away. Both of them were taking in deep breaths to regain consciousness as they looked at each other’s faces.

Noelle had opened her mouth, about to whisper something again before Tom sent her what she assumed was an apologetic smile that was hidden by all the blood, quickly jumping out of the kiddie pool and rushing to the edge of where he was to enter, the sound effects of old rickety doors being played before Tom was back into his character and sauntering back out into the stage lights.

Noelle just stood frozen in front of the kiddie pool, still looking at where Tom had exited to get back on stage, jolting slightly when Annette nudged her as Hadley rushed over to their little station.

“Be sure I’m invited to the wedding,” Annette whispered close to her ear before Noelle just let out a small huff, feeling her face heat up for what was probably the millionth time since her day at the Donmar started.

Noelle just shook off her feelings for the moment and waved Hadley over with her bloody hands, starting to quickly apply what blood was left on her skin onto the left side of his head to make it look like he’d gotten hit in that spot when he rushed over.

_“Come on, my fellows. Make good this ostentation, and you shall divide in all with us!”_

Noelle smiled kindly at Hadley as he waved at Noelle as a thanks before he had sent a wink over her shoulder, the music for the scene starting as he went back onto the stage.

Noelle had turned her head to look behind her, seeing Annette happily grabbing the empty blood bucket to start cleaning it when Noelle had interrupted her, clearing her throat quietly.

“You and Hadley?”

“ _None_ of your concern,” Annette sassed quickly before she rushed off to go and rinse the bucket, leaving Noelle alone with blood on her face and hands.

She had slid back onto the stool to sit for the moment she had alone, hearing the clanking of Tom and Hadley’s swords as they fought, trying to wrap her head around what had happened mere minutes ago now.

Tom kissed her. _Her._ Little Noelle Cooper, who liked special effects makeup and spends her free time reading and sleeping when she has the time off.

Dread was slowly coming over her when she got back on her feet to apply more blood onto Tom’s arm.

They’d have to talk this out after the show is done for the night, and when Tom is ready for his prosthetics to come off. And they’re already a good twenty-five minutes into the show, so Noelle was sure she’d have her emotions squared away by the time the ending of the play came. _Hopefully_.

Noelle had a new opened bottle of stage blood in her hands as Tom carefully stepped back into the kiddie pool, still breathing heavily from the sparring and hand to hand combat scene he just finished, his left arm held out for the second blood application of the night.

She was just as quick as she usually was, being sure to apply the stage blood over where the prosthetic under the shirt was practically glued down hours ago. Noelle had touched up a bit of the other spots of blood and added some extra flecks on Tom’s shirt over his abdomen before finally being pleased with her work.

Tom smiled his usual charming smile as they made eye contact before he was stepping out of the kiddie pool again, going back to the stage as other actors were cheering for his characters reappearance.

Noelle let out a quiet sigh of relief, her work for the first half of the show done, and hopefully the makeup looked amazing for the cameras.

Now that she’s left alone with her thoughts, maybe the outcome for the dread she was feeling would turn out amazing, too.


	3. But For Those Who Love, Time Is Eternal

Noelle cleaned up the best she could during intermission while some of the crew carried the kiddie pool back to the makeup room, dried blood still covering her arms despite her best efforts to scrape it off. She didn’t take off any of the alcohol paint yet either, she just couldn’t be bothered to go through that process.

Her lips and cheeks however were slightly stained from the stage blood that was from Tom’s face, but she didn’t happen to mind at all.

She happily stood off in the backstage area, reapplying any makeup or blood that was needed until the end of the show, trying to ignore the previous dread she was working against as she rushed all the way back to her little makeup room, getting things ready for Tom’s makeup removal routine they usually go through.

Noelle has no idea what she’s going to say to Tom.

Sure, she could totally say that she’s been having thoughts of kissing him, or say that maybe she’s had a few dreams or two about him and they don’t _have to_ be anything with labels if he doesn’t want to, but Noelle _knows_ Tom, and she knows that he wouldn’t just do something if he didn’t mean it.

Maybe she was possibly going into a slight panic mode for nothing, but she was so busy rushing around the makeup room to get the bigger alcohol spray bottle she had ready for Tom with the baby wipes they usually used for his alcohol paint that she didn’t even hear him come in.

Noelle was in the middle of bending over one of the small desk drawers as she dug around for the wipes with the bottle of alcohol in her empty hand when he finally decided to make his presence known.

“Noelle? Do you need help?”

She was quick to straighten up as she picked up the package of wipes and look over at Tom, her heart starting to pick up speed slightly at the sight she was seeing.

Tom was shirtless, wearing his joggers he came in that had black alcohol stains on it’s band that was resting just at Tom’s hips.

She damn near almost zoned out again before she forcefully pulled herself together and finish what she’s _supposed_ to be doing.

“Not anymore, no, you can go ahead and sit on the stool, Tom,” Noelle said in her normal voice. She really had to give herself some credit on not showing how on edge she’s feeling right now.

Tom let out a faint chuckle and nodded, carefully making his way to the stool that was in the kiddie pool once more, gently placing a hand on Noelle’s waist to slip past her casually.

Tom has to be trying to kill her.

Noelle quickly leaned over to place the spray bottle and wipes on the small table that still had a few of the makeup products she used earlier on it, starting to move back to the vanity to grab a few cotton balls for the prosthetic removal.

“How was the show? Did you accidentally hit a cameraman?” Noelle teased gently as she stood in front of the table now, placing the cotton balls down before picking up the spray bottle and wipe pack again. Tom let out a laugh as he positioned himself comfortably on the stool.

“The show went well, no cameramen were injured in the making.”

“That’s good,” Noelle started, turning around and placing the spray bottle and wipes into Tom’s awaiting hands, “you got the blood on your neck off already?”

“Yeah, I thought it’d make things a little easier, I had to get it out of my mouth again,” Tom reasoned, the both of them laughing before Noelle moved to grab the bottle of spirit gum remover as she cooed.

“You _poor baby_ , must have tasted terrible.”

“Actually, it wasn’t flavored, that’s really the only request that I have,” Tom joked, carefully opening the pack of wipes that he balanced on his thigh before spraying on some of the alcohol on his abdomen, pulling a wipe out quickly to wipe off the paint that was coming off his skin.

Noelle huffed out another laugh as she grabbed a couple of the cotton balls before moving to where Tom’s left arm was.

“You should have told me that sooner, show ends in two weeks and I don’t think I’ll have enough time to experiment and see if you actually can.”

“Well it’s just corn syrup isn’t it?”

“Yeah, but what flavor would you ask for it to be? Cherry? Mint? Can you mix it yourself or does it have to come from a factory or somethin’?” Noelle questioned, starting to pour a small amount of the remover on her first cotton ball of the evening.

“You make a fair point,” Tom agreed, exaggerating a sigh as he sprayed another part of his skin before wiping at the alcohol paint again. Noelle let out a small laugh as she started to rub on the edge of the prosthetic.

“I sure hope I do. Are you stage dooring tonight?” Noelle questioned suddenly, her tense shoulders starting to loosen.

_It’s just Tom you’re dealing with, Noelle, why were you so worried?_

“I’d love to, but I don’t feel like making you rush this whole process,” Tom reasoned, turning his head to watch Noelle rub at the prosthetic as he rubbed at another spot, Noelle gazing up at Tom to catch him watching before he sent her a smile.

_That’s why._

“How about we just take our time then and we’ll see?” Noelle compromised, sending a shy smile back at Tom before she moved her gaze back to the prosthetic.

“I like the sound of that plan,” Tom said with a slight childish tone, making himself laugh before they both fell into a comfortable silence, working at their own paces to get the makeup off.

Noelle was working on getting the thin layer of spirit gum covered cotton balls off of Tom’s right shoulder as she held the prosthetic in question in her other hand, trying not to rub too hard at Tom’s skin.

Tom was working on wiping the rest of the alcohol paint that was close to the hem of his joggers and a few of the crevices that were still black when he spoke up.

“Hey, Noelle?”

“Yeah?” Noelle questioned back, letting out a small huff of annoyance as some of the cotton stayed onto Tom’s skin before moving to douse the cotton ball in more of the remover liquid.

“I’m uh... I’m sorry about earlier, I don’t mean to sound rude or too.. too blunt-”

“Tom, it’s okay.” Noelle’s tone was softer now when she cut him off, starting to rub at the cotton balls attached to his skin again as Tom tried to turn his head to look at her as he stopped wiping the alcohol paint on his skin.

“I liked it, if I’m quite honest,” Noelle finished, a small sigh of relief emitting from her as she finally got the bit she was rubbing at off before she finally stopped picking at his skin.

Tom leaned forwards and placed the alcohol bottle and packet of wipes on the table before carefully sliding around on the stool to look at Noelle who was practically standing between Tom’s wide spread legs.

“You did?” He asked, still sitting up straight which made both him and Noelle the same height. Noelle nodded and felt her face start to heat up before leaning to her left to place everything in her hands down on the vanity edge.

“I mean, yeah. I would have preferred _no blood_ , but beggars can’t be choosers.”

The both of them shared a laugh.

“I can assure you, if I had the confidence to do it sooner than when blood had been put on my face, I would have.”

“Have you been thinking about kissing me _that_ long?” Noelle asked suddenly, moving to slide her hands into her front pockets as she watched Tom start to blush and looked down at his clasped hands before laughing shyly.

“Maybe a bit longer than you’d think,” Tom confirmed, finally looking up as he slouched slightly, smiling bashfully as he made eye contact with Noelle. Noelle bit the inside of her lip as she tried to hold back a smile and cross her arms over her chest.

“Well, lucky for you, I’ve been thinking the same thing.” Noelle casually shifted from one foot to the other.

Tom rose his brows playfully and leaned back as he gave a little nod before letting out a quiet hum in thought.

“So then what are the chances of me getting a do over on that kiss, blood free?” Tom questioned suddenly, his eyes moving quick to glance at Noelle’s lips before looking back into her eyes.

Noelle tried to hold back the shock on her face. She should have seen it coming, due to the flirting and even the first kiss, but she just couldn’t believe that he’d want to kiss her for a second time. If she was in his position, having to kiss her, she wouldn’t go in for _seconds._

She was stumbling over words, trying to stay calm like she had during the whole conversation, her face heating up even more if it were possible.

“I’d, uh, say your chances are _extremely_ high, if you’re determined enough,” Noelle said, finally settling on a set of words. The sentence seemed extremely awkward and uncomfortable, and clearly Tom could hear it.

“Noelle, you don’t have to say yes if you don’t feel comfortable-”

“No, no, Tom, I’m perfectly comfortable, it’s just..” Noelle trailed off before taking a breath and letting her hands fall to hit her thighs.

“I’m _nervous_. That’s all, I’m just nervous,” Noelle said finally, letting out a small huff as Tom sat up straight and held his hand out.

Noelle glanced down at it before carefully placed her hand in his.

“May I ask why you’re nervous?” Tom questioned carefully, gently running his thumb over her knuckles as he watched her face intently. Noelle smiled small and ducked her head down to collect her thoughts.

“I-It’s just.. I’ve been _wanting_ this for so long.. You know? I don’t want to mess it up. I’ve been _terrible_ at flirting back with you, and I don’t want you to think that I _don’t_ want this-”

Tom carefully placed a knuckle under Noelle’s chin to lift her head up, which caused her to stop rambling on. He had a smile on his lips as he maintained eye contact.

“Noelle, you’re doing _fantastic_ so far, believe me.”

Noelle let out a quiet huff of a laugh as she tried to escape his gaze before just giving up entirely.

“I don’t feel like I have, but I’ll take your word for it.” She glanced down at Tom’s lips for a split second, but looked away and back into his blue eyes as soon as it started to quirk up into a tiny smirk.

“Can I have the honor of kissing you? Except with your permission this time.”

Noelle didn’t even hesitate to let the smile grow on her face as she fought to let her anxiety about the situation relax.

“I think I can give that honor up for you, yeah.”

Tom let out a chuckle as his finger that was supporting her chin moved to cup her cheek with his whole hand that wasn’t holding hers, gently tugging her between his legs a bit more so he didn’t have to lean forwards too much.

Noelle let out a quiet gasp before from the sudden tug before their lips connected for the second time in the night.

It was just like she dreamt and more, sure. It was almost just as good, if not _better_ than the kiss during the production when he had the blood on his face.

Tom’s hand that was holding Noelle’s hand had finally found its place back at her waist, leaving Noelle’s hands to roam as she moved her head closer to Tom’s to deepen the kiss.

A small grunt was swallowed by Noelle’s lips as her hands flew to Tom’s thighs to catch herself as she shuffled forwards in between Tom’s legs to keep their lips close as possible, the hand on her cheek finally going to the other side of her waist.

She didn’t want to pull away.

 _God,_ she really didn’t want to pull away, but the need for air was almost as high as she felt when Tom slipped down to her hips casually, gripping a little harder than necessary.

She held back the moan she wanted to let out and accidentally bit Tom’s bottom lip.

And he didn’t hold back the moan that bubbled out of his throat, causing the both of them to pull away, their cheeks flushed and lips slightly plumper than they were before.

Yeah, that was the best kiss Noelle’s probably had since her days at LAMDA. And that’s saying something.

She and Tom were gently panting, trying to regain the air they had been depriving themselves of for a few minutes in time before Tom’s hand was back up on her cheek, his thumb gently rubbing against her bottom lip as he drank in her complexion.

He seemed to be in a daze, and Noelle couldn’t bring herself to pull him out of it since she was busy looking back into his eyes to see that they looked like a darker shade of blue.

Apparently she was also in a daze until Tom spoke up.

“You have witchcraft in your lips,” He mumbled, slowly moving forward to lock their lips in another kiss again until she started to giggle, her head jerking to the side which caused his lips to land on the corner of her mouth.

“What?”

“I didn’t know you took me for a Kate.”

Tom scrunched his face into confusion before his words finally set in, his face seeming to become redder as he pulled his hand from Noelle’s cheek to cover his face as he laughed, looking embarrassed.

“I am so sorry, even though the statement is true, I thought I only said that in my head,” Tom reasoned, still chuckling slightly as he looked up at Noelle who was still grinning fondly at him.

“I don’t mind it. I don’t believe my lips could persuade _Harry of England_ all that well though, I have tendencies to believe I’m not all that eloquent, _Sire_ ,” Noelle teased gently, quickly moving to press a kiss to Tom’s lips one last time before carefully moving to escape from being trapped between his legs.

“Oh believe me, I’m more than positive they could, _Katherine Queen of All._ ”

Noelle rolled her eyes, smiling wide as her feet connected with the concrete floor, gathering the cotton balls she used from the vanity edge.

“Sure, _Henry_ , finish getting the alcohol paint off of you. _Then_ we’ll talk.”

Tom laughed aloud once more, his head falling back while Noelle tossed the cotton balls into the bin.

The both of them finally felt lighter around each other, it seemed.

It was a nice sudden change of tempo. It felt _right_. And who was Noelle to deny the universe if they were meant to be?

Okay, maybe the universe wasn’t telling her anything, but Tom had her wrapped around his little finger, she may as well be jelly at this point in the night, they’d already shared more kisses as she helped him wipe off the paint on his body.

They were both working on rubbing off the last bits of the alcohol paint when Noelle spoke up.

“You might be able to get the paint that’s around here off with rubbing alcohol too,” She said, gently tugging the elastic band back quickly before letting go to let it snap against Tom’s hip.

“Hey! Careful down there!”

Noelle laughed at his response before tossing her baby wipe that was pitch black away into the bin once more, deciding to let Tom finish his last bit so she could start wiping the black that was on her arms off.

“I was thinking,” Tom started, tossing his own wipe into the bin on the first try as Noelle sprayed her right arm with the alcohol spray bottle, “would you like to go to this little Italian place for dinner on Sunday?”

Noelle should have expected it, but she can’t help that Tom makes her feel like she’s flying out of the window constantly.

She went with what her gut was saying, and her brain decided it would be smart to be funny during this situation.

“I don’t know. Will any spirit gum, latex prosthetics, or stage blood be involved?” She questioned, getting a baby wipe from the table to carefully wipe her forearm down.

Tom stood in the kiddie pool, his feet planted in the clean spots as he climbed out smoothly, a small giggle coming back to Noelle in reply.

“I sure hope not.”

Noelle turned to face Tom with a grin as she rubbed at her forearm slowly, standing right in front of him.

“Then yes, I’d love to attend, RADA.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I finished this piece. I had outlined this whole fic in four pages, front and back. It was originally supposed to be one chapter, and it's three with almost 10k words. I am honestly blown away. This is like a child to me at this point, honestly.
> 
> Thank you so much for the love for Tom and Noelle over the short period of me posting. If you liked how I wrote about Tom and Noelle being in a show together, I'm already planning another fic like this, but only Noelle was casted in the show that was performed circa 2015 that I picked, and you get to see her have some scenes with an old friend of hers.
> 
> (The chapter titles were taken from a quote by Henry Van Dyke)


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